MASS MEDIA – AUSTRALIA

Foxtel fights back as streaming services tempt subscribers

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Original article by Jared Lynch
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 30 : 23-Mar-15

A Venture Consulting surveys shows that around 250,000 of Foxtel’s customers intend to cancel or reduce their pay-TV subscription and start using a video streaming service in the next three months. Foxtel CEO Richard Freudenstein is confident that the company’s subscriber base will not be unduly affected by the growth of video streaming. Foxtel has joined forces with Seven West Media to establish its own streaming service

CORPORATES
FOXTEL MANAGEMENT PTY LTD, VENTURE CONSULTING PTY LTD, SEVEN WEST MEDIA LIMITED – ASX SWM, PRESTO ENTERTAINMENT PTY LTD, NETFLIX INCORPORATED, QUICKFLIX LIMITED – ASX QFX, STAN, NINE ENTERTAINMENT COMPANY HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX NEC, FAIRFAX MEDIA LIMITED – ASX FXJ, NEWS CORPORATION – ASX NWS, NEWS CORP AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, TELSTRA CORPORATION LIMITED – ASX TLS, APPLE INCORPORATED, COMCAST CORPORATION, TIME WARNER INCORPORATED

Discovery Communications walks from Channel Ten auction

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Original article by Dominic White
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 13 & 18 : 23-Mar-15

Discovery Communications has abandoned its proposed takeover of the Ten Network in partnership with Foxtel. They had initially offered $A0.26 per share, but reduced this to $A0.23 after due diligence. Discovery and Foxtel had proposed to acquire Ten’s main assets, and Discovery would not support an alternative proposal from Ten directors for the joint venture partners to each acquire a 14.99 per cent stake and gain a seat on Ten’s board

CORPORATES
TEN NETWORK HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX TEN, DISCOVERY COMMUNICATIONS INCORPORATED, FOXTEL MANAGEMENT PTY LTD, CITIGROUP PTY LTD, WIN CORPORATION PTY LTD, NEWS CORPORATION – ASX NWS, CROWN RESORTS LIMITED – ASX CWN, LAZARD ASSET MANAGEMENT PACIFIC COMPANY

Murdoch eyes radio assets in APN play

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Original article by Dominic White, Sarah Thompson
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 13 & 18 : 20-Mar-15

Independent News & Media (INM) and Baycliffe have exited the share register of Australian-listed APN News & Media. INM netted about $A180m for its 191 million shares, while Baycliffe offloaded 125 million shares for $A117m. Meanwhile, News Corporation has built a 14.99 per cent stake in APN, although under existing media ownership laws it is prohibited from increasing this. APN shares were placed in a trading halt at $A0.94 on 19 March 2015

CORPORATES
APN NEWS AND MEDIA LIMITED – ASX APN, INDEPENDENT NEWS AND MEDIA PLC, BAYCLIFFE LIMITED, NEWS CORPORATION – ASX NWS, NOVA ENTERTAINMENT PTY LTD, KIIS1065, AUSTRALIAN RADIO NETWORK PTY LTD, SOUTHERN CROSS MEDIA GROUP LIMITED – ASX SXL, 101.7 WS-FM, NOVA 96.9 PTY LTD, SMOOTHFM, 2DAY FM AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, NZME, AUSTRALIAN COMPETITION AND CONSUMER COMMISSION, AUSTRALIA. FOREIGN INVESTMENT REVIEW BOARD, CREDIT SUISSE (AUSTRALIA) LIMITED, ALLAN GRAY AUSTRALIA PTY LTD

Hockey claim for ‘substantial’ damages in Fairfax case

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Original article by Marianna Papadakis
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 2 : 18-Mar-15

The defamation case brought by Federal Treasurer Joe Hockey against Fairfax Media continued on 17 March 2015. Hockey is being represented by Bruce McClintock, SC, who told the court that in addition to general damages his client should receive aggravated damages. McClintock argued that the three Fairfax newspapers that published the allegedly defamatory articles should be treated separately in any assessment of general damages

CORPORATES
FAIRFAX MEDIA LIMITED – ASX FXJ, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE TREASURY, NORTH SYDNEY FORUM, LIBERAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA

Back to realty: News Corp rules property search in Melbourne – but will Sydney be Fairfax’s domain?

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Original article by Roy Morgan Research
Market Research Update – Page: Online : 12-Mar-15

A Roy Morgan Single Source survey has found that 819,000 property-hunters in Melbourne visited Realestate.com.au via website or app and/or read the Herald Sun’s weekday or weekend real estate section in an average week during the year to December 2014. This is seven per cent higher than in 2013. Domain’s total audience, comprising both digital visitors and readers of the print sections of The Age, rose by four per cent to 486,000 in 2014. In Sydney, Domain’s total digital and Sydney Morning Herald print reach rose by 10 per cent in 2014, to 675,000 in an average week. The number of people accessing Realestate.com.au and/or the Daily Telegraph’s real estate section in an average week was virtually unchanged at 683,000

CORPORATES
ROY MORGAN RESEARCH LIMITED, NEWS CORP AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, NEWS CORPORATION – ASX NWS, REALESTATE.COM.AU, FAIRFAX MEDIA LIMITED – ASX FXJ, DOMAIN.COM.AU

Gordon offers to pump up to $100m into Ten

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Original article by Dominic White
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 15 & 20 : 11-Mar-15

The Ten Network’s largest shareholder, Bruce Gordon, opposes the broadcaster’s proposed acquisition by Foxtel and Discovery Communications. The 14.9 per cent stakeholder has instead approached Ten about investing an additional $A70m to $A100m in the network. This investment would be converted into equity in Ten if cross-media ownership laws are changed in the future. Gordon has also proposed being given two seats on Ten’s board

CORPORATES
TEN NETWORK HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX TEN, WIN CORPORATION PTY LTD, FOXTEL MANAGEMENT PTY LTD, DISCOVERY COMMUNICATIONS INCORPORATED, CROWN RESORTS LIMITED – ASX CWN, NEWS CORPORATION – ASX NWS, HANCOCK PROSPECTING PTY LTD, CITIGROUP PTY LTD, GOLDMAN SACHS AND PARTNERS AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, TELSTRA CORPORATION LIMITED – ASX TLS, LAZARD ASSET MANAGEMENT PACIFIC COMPANY

Radio toasts advertising renaissance

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Original article by Dominic White
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 14 : 10-Mar-15

Data from Deloitte shows that advertising revenue for commercial radio stations in Australia’s five largest capital cities increased by 5.03 per cent during the first half of 2014-15. Australian Radio Network CEO Ciaran Davis attributes the rise to the defection of radio presenters Kyle and Jackie O. Commonwealth Bank media analyst Alice Bennett says the lower cost of radio advertising compared with TV was a key factor

CORPORATES
DELOITTE TOUCHE TOHMATSU LIMITED, AUSTRALIAN RADIO NETWORK PTY LTD, KIIS1065, APN NEWS AND MEDIA LIMITED – ASX APN, 2DAY FM AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, SOUTHERN CROSS MEDIA GROUP LIMITED – ASX SXL, COMMONWEALTH BANK OF AUSTRALIA – ASX CBA, COMMERCIAL RADIO AUSTRALIA LIMITED, NOVA ENTERTAINMENT PTY LTD, FAIRFAX RADIO NETWORK PTY LTD, FAIRFAX MEDIA LIMITED – ASX FXJ, MACQUARIE RADIO NETWORK LIMITED – ASX MRN, COMMERCIAL ECONOMIC ADVISORY SERVICE OF AUSTRALIA, GOLDMAN SACHS AND PARTNERS AUSTRALIA PTY LTD

Netflix reveals Australian launch date and iiNet deal

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Original article by Jared Lynch
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 16 : 4-Mar-15

Netflix has secured a deal with iiNet for the Australian-listed ISP’s customers to have unmetered access to the video streaming service. US-based Netflix has confirmed that its service will commence in Australia and New Zealand on 24 March 2015, offering content such as films and popular TV shows. Established player Quickflix recently reported a 2014-15 interim net loss of $A8.6m and a five per cent decline in subscribers

CORPORATES
NETFLIX INCORPORATED, IINET LIMITED – ASX IIN, QUICKFLIX LIMITED – ASX QFX, SINGTEL OPTUS PTY LTD, SINGAPORE TELECOMMUNICATIONS LIMITED – ASX SGT, FAIRFAX MEDIA LIMITED – ASX FXJ, NINE ENTERTAINMENT COMPANY HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX NEC, FOXTEL MANAGEMENT PTY LTD, SEVEN WEST MEDIA LIMITED – ASX SWM, PRESTO ENTERTAINMENT PTY LTD, STAN

Rinehart sues for Hancock ‘falsehoods’

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Original article by Jared Lynch
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 21 : 3-Mar-15

Australian billionaire Gina Rinehart is seeking damages from Nine Entertainment Company for alleged defamation. Rinehart says that 20 "glaring errors" were made in Nine’s two-part TV series "House of Hancock". Her claims, including that Nine committed the tort of injurious or malicious falsehood, were filed in the Supreme Court of New South Wales in late February 2015

CORPORATES
NINE ENTERTAINMENT COMPANY HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX NEC, SUPREME COURT OF NEW SOUTH WALES, HANCOCK PROSPECTING PTY LTD

I’m not going anywhere: Holleran

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Original article by Dominic White
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 35 : 2-Mar-15

Southern Cross Media Group’s share of the radio market fell from 34.3 per cent to 27.5 per cent year-on-year in the December 2014 quarter. CEO Rhys Holleran is confident that the group can rebuild market share by the end of 2015, saying a priority will be to turn around the struggling 2Day FM network. He has also downplayed speculation that he could step down, and stresses that the media group is not actively pursuing merger discussions at present

CORPORATES
SOUTHERN CROSS MEDIA GROUP LIMITED – ASX SXL, 2DAY FM AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, KIIS1065, AUSTRALIAN RADIO NETWORK PTY LTD, APN NEWS AND MEDIA LIMITED – ASX APN, MACQUARIE GROUP LIMITED – ASX MQG, PACIFIC BRANDS LIMITED – ASX PBG, MANTRA GROUP LIMITED – ASX MTR, NINE ENTERTAINMENT COMPANY HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX NEC, LION PTY LTD, IBM AUSTRALIA LIMITED, AUSTEREO GROUP LIMITED, ALLAN GRAY AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, TEN NETWORK HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX TEN, WOOLWORTHS LIMITED – ASX WOW, WIN CORPORATION PTY LTD, FOXTEL MANAGEMENT PTY LTD, DISCOVERY COMMUNICATIONS INCORPORATED, SEVEN NETWORK LIMITED, SEVEN WEST MEDIA LIMITED – ASX SWM